Windows: Microsoft today released Windows Live Essentials 2011, a free suite of solid desktop applications ranging from Messenger and Photo Gallery to Movie Maker and Mail.

In all, Windows Live Essentials is one big, sometimes incomprehensible bucket that contains a lot of different applications of varying degrees of usefulness. In June we walked you through each of the big apps, but as a brief refresher, Windows Live Essentials includes:

The entire suite is available for download now from the link below. When you're installing, I'd recommend clicking the Choose the programs you want to install option so you can avoid installing, at the very least, the Bing Bar.